Sueños De Los Flyover States: Narratives of Latino Males in the Great Plains

ABSTRACT

In this study, we use a narrative inquiry approach to present the stories of two Latino males attending community colleges in the Great Plains region of the United States that includes the Dakotas, Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa, popularly referred to as “flyover states.” The purpose of this inquiry, part of a larger study in an area of the United States that goes largely understudied in research on immigrants in community colleges, was to examine the ways in which race and immigrant status inform career and educational aspirations in the lives of Latino males. After presenting narratives of the two students, we highlight ways in which their stories showed their meaning making around their social identities, how their aspirations were informed by these social identity statuses, and describe how their experiences were shaped by the Great Plains context. Findings and implications are discussed.

Notes

1. The term Latino/a/x is used broadly to refer to male, female, gender nonconforming, and gender queer individuals who are racially identified under the Hispanic or Latino umbrella term. The term Latino is used to refer explicitly to Latino men.

2. In reference to a racialized category, the term “white” is left uncapitalized while reference to People of Color is capitalized. Such is practice in critical work that seeks to decenter whites and center the lived experiences of People of Color.